[QUOTE="Tresca_"][QUOTE="vashkey"] No. The topic does bring up a good point. Why does Call of Duty get criticized for sitting the same graphics engine an entire console generation but Valve gets a free pass?
vashkey
That's because your comparing a game against a developer. Call of Duty looks the same year in year out to an extent that I can't even distinguish which one is which.
Valve games on the other hand have their own visual identity, TF2 doesn't look like L4D, and neither look like Portal. They have explored different avenues with the Source Engine, and have come out with unique looking games. It also helps that they don't release umpteen versions of TF, L4D and Portal.
No, I'm comparing how The CoD series frequently recieves criticism for using the same old engine but Valve doesn't. I wasn't talking about art direction(and there really isn't much other places you can take CoD in that is hasn't already....)You've just said it. That is the reason they get criticised. What can CoD bring to the table every year that is new through that engine? When you limit yourself to making a game anually for a single franchise there isn't much room to maneuver.
It only makes sense that if you are sticking with the same engine that you would develop different games in order to prevent things stagnating from a visual perspective.
Valve have managed to do that. The plethora of CoD developers have not, and they don't mind cause it's selling regardless; they don't feel the need to create something new and original.
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